Excalibur Evolution
by heroes for ghosts
Summary: NEW CHAPTER 9 UP-TRAPPED IN LIMBO!-Excalibur done Evolution style. Kitty, Rogue, Kurt and Hank spend the summer on Muir and meet Betsy, Brian, Meggan, Jono, Illyana and Pete Wisdom!
1. The Arrival

Title: Excalibur Evolution Author: heroes for ghosts E-mail address: glittergrr@yahoo.com  
  
Notes: I'm worried that this may be the end of X-Men Evolution. So, inspired by this fear, I've gotten off my lazy ass and decided to write something I've had in my head for a while. LOTS of romance in this one- Kiotr, Kete (or Pitty if you prefer, lol), Romy (Remy WILL show up!), and Kurt, Betsy, Brian and Meggan will all find love too- but I'm not going to give away with who yet! Illyana and Jono are only mentioned in this one, and Remy isn't mentioned at ALL, but they're all going to become more involved as this goes on, I promise. That is, if it goes on- I need encouragement and a kick to the rear to stop being lazy!!!  
  
******  
  
"Will someone please tell me why I'm doing this again?" Kitty sighed, leaning back in the X Jet chair with her arms over her head. "Over the summer, you're supposed to go on vacation, not do MORE schoolwork."  
  
But Keety," Kurt grinned, "ve ARE going on vacation!"  
  
"Going to Scotland does NOT count as vacation, Elf!" Kitty grumbled, crossing her arms and pouting.  
  
"She's right, Kurt," Rogue drawled. "Ah think anyplace where it's gonna rain more than not doesn't count."  
  
Beast smiled, looking over his shoulder at the complaining students. "Come on, children. When this summer credit curriculum was announced, all three of you were eager to sign up."  
  
"That was a dirty trick Mr. McCoy," Kitty fumed, "Not to say where this 'great enjoyable educational trip' was going to be."  
  
Kurt leaned forward, whispering to Hank, loud enough for the other to hear. "And vhy did ve have to take HIM?"  
  
"SHH!" Kitty kicked the back of Kurt's seat. She glanced over to the seat next to her where it appeared Piotr Rasputin was still napping peacefully. "Don't piss him off."  
  
Rogue grinned, looking over the top of her chair at Kitty. "You just wanna keep 'im sleepin' so you can drool over 'im in peace."  
  
A loud growl emitted from Kitty, stomping her foot and glaring at Kurt and Rouge. "I am NOT drooling over him!!!"  
  
Piotr sprung up, snapping back in his seat as he bounced off the seat belt. "Katya? What is wrong?"  
  
Kitty sighed, rolling her eyes at the snickers of Kurt and Rogue. "Nothing's wrong. Go back to sleep."  
  
"You got some drool on ya, sugah," Rouge sniggered.  
  
Piotr paused, blinking. Kitty buried her head in her hands as even Hank couldn't resist a quiet chuckle. Finally, Piotr broke into a smile and rubbed his mouth with his hand. "Da, thank you."  
  
Kurt giggled slightly as Rogue flopped back into her chair, growling. "Sarcasm is lost on that Ruskie."  
  
"Did I miss something, Katya?" Piotr asked, looking over at Kitty with big blue eyes. Kitty sighed, smiling awkwardly at him, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. Hank saw the perfect opportunity to jump in and took it.  
  
"We were just discussing why you have decided to grace us with your presence, Piotr. It seems that the youth of America has a difficult time staying awake during our briefing sessions."  
  
"Hey, vho are you calling American?!" Kurt joked.  
  
Hank continued, throwing a small smile in apology to Kurt. "I am sure that you are most excited to be reunited with your younger sister, Piotr."  
  
"Da, I am very excited to see my little Illyana. Though I must admit, I am very worried about the conditions surrounding our reunion."  
  
Hank sighed, nodding his head slightly as he continued piloting the X Jet. "I myself must agree that I do not understand why Professor Xavier was not able to give us more information on how your sister found herself at Muir or why we must arrive in such haste."  
  
"What about that British kid?" Rogue asked. "I thought we were comin' to help 'im."  
  
"Yes, we're doing that as well, Rogue. Perhaps now you understand why I needed so many extra hands." He heard Kitty grumble in the back and smiled. "I especially needed your help Kitty as our resident gear head. After all, two geniuses are better than one, yes?"  
  
"You are a genius, Katya?" Piotr asked. Rogue giggled as Kitty slowly turned a deep red. "You did not tell me this."  
  
"A brain *and* a beauty, eh Piotr?" Kurt grinned evilly and received yet another kick in the back.  
  
Piotr began to blush as well. "Da, tovarish," he said quietly.  
  
Hank smiled to himself. He guided the X Jet to the landing field at the Muir Research Facility as Kurt and Rogue giggled and catcalled at the two in the back. He peered out the window, nodding at Moira MacTaggert, Charles Xavier's old flame and Nobel Prize winning chemist who stood waiting. Around her darted a small girl, her long blonde hair flying about her as she nervously hid behind Moria's legs. He quickly glanced over the Research Center as he noticed a young woman striding from the building with intense purple hair. A blonde guy emerged from behind the jet resting next to the research center covered with grease. Hank saw the shadow of a man sitting at an upstairs window, smoking. He swallowed nervously as he worried about the group of young mutants staying with Moira: would they get along with the X-Men okay?  
  
Hank did not have much time to worry as Rasputin bounded down the walkway, running breathlessly up to Moira. "My sister, Illyana, where is she?"  
  
Moira crossed her arms across her chest, glaring at Piotr. The small blonde girl started nervously and flew back, hanging in the air and regarding the newcomer with fear. The young man walked closer to the girl protectively, wiping his hands on a rage as he too looked at Piotr and the X-Men with suspicion. The girl with purple hair stood beside Moira with a hand on her hip. Kitty, Rogue and Kurt followed obediently behind Hank, all slightly nervous.  
  
Moira glanced over at the purple haired girl next to her. "Betsy, can ye get Pete down here?" The girl nodded, smirking slightly as she gave a condescending look at the X-Men before she sauntered off. Hank smiled and moved to shake Moira's hand before she pulled him into a friendly hug. "Och, its good tae see ye again, Hank." She turned to face the rest as they filled in behind Hank. "I guess that the rude one of ye is Rasputin." Piotr lowered his head, mumbling an apology. "Ah, its okay, I know ye must be worried about yuir sister. And this must be Kitty, Kurt and Rogue." The three nodded, smiling at her as she continued. "This wee one is Meggan, the gel with the purple hair that just ran inside is Betsy Braddock and this lad here is her twin Brian." Brian nodded a welcome and Meggan flit a bit closer, grinning hesitantly.  
  
Betsy strode out of the building, smiling at the X-Men. Behind her trailed a guy in his early twenties, dressed in a rumpled suit and with a cigarette hanging out from his mouth. He peered at the interlopers with a suspicious glare before standing off to the side to finish his cigarette. Meggan darted up into the air again and circled around him once before landing behind Pete. Moira looked over the man with a blatantly distrustful look. "And this here is the bane of me existence, Pete Wisdom." Pete growled in response.  
  
Next to Kurt, Kitty shifted about nervously. Instinctively, Kurt snaked his tail around Kitty's leg gently. He couldn't help but feel protective of his best friend, with the way that Rasputin had been acting towards her and how Pete had glared at them all. His feelings for her still lingered, he just couldn't help it. From the beginning he knew he cared more about her than she did him, but it didn't hurt him any less. They had dated for a while before he had broken it off with her, knowing that she would never feel the way he wanted about him. To her, he would always be her best friend and he was able to be content with that, just as long as he remained a prominent figure in her life. He didn't necessarily like or trust Rasputin; he didn't care what Piotr's initial motivation was, Kurt didn't easily forget that the Russian had fought against them on the side of Magneto. And the four year age difference seemed so much wider than it actually was.  
  
Hank looked over to the X-Men as Kitty leaned against Kurt. "These here with me are the X-Men. Kurt Wagner," Kurt smiled and waved a three fingered hand, "Rogue, Piotr Rasputin and Kitty Pryde." Kitty flinched as she heard a snort at her name.  
  
"Wisdom," Moira growled, "behave." Kitty put her hands on her hip and glared at Pete, shaking loose of Kurt's tail. Rogue looked surprised over at the brunette; she couldn't remember the last time when she had seen Kitty look so mad. Piotr, completely oblivious, spoke up again.  
  
"Dr. MacTaggert, where is my sister? It has been too long since I have since her, and I am worried." Moira nodded and headed off to the building, motioning for the others to follow.  
  
"Illyana is in the med lab," she said over her shoulder. Turning, she saw the look on Piotr's face. "Och, dinnae worry Rasputin. She's fine. The lass is just vistin' with Jono."  
  
Following Moira, Kurt looked up to Hank. "Jono?"  
  
"Jonothan Starsmore," Hank replied, holding the door to the research center open for Betsy and Brian who trailed after him. "He's the young British man who we have come to help."  
  
Kurt frowned slightly as he watched Kitty gravitate towards Piotr as they walked down the halls. "So Piotr, err- what's your sister like?"  
  
He smiled at her, and Kitty instantly blushed. "Illyana is my little snowflake. She is turning six next month." A hand was placed around Kitty's shoulders affectionately. "You will love her."  
  
Meanwhile, at the end of the line, Rogue walked and watched Kitty's awkward attraction, Kurt's wariness and the timid curiosity of Meggan. Betsy and Brian were doing their best to appear indifferent, but Rogue noticed them peering inquisitively at Kurt. She caught bits of their whispered conversations as they speculated who had what kind of power. The strong pungent smell of smoke assaulted Rogue suddenly and she scrunched up her nose. She turned around to look at Pete and prepared to turn on the old Southern charm.  
  
"Excuse me Mr. Wisdom," she smiled, "could ya please put tha' out?"  
  
He gave her a large fake smile that abruptly stopped. "Sod off," he growled.  
  
And Pete stormed off, exhaling a large breath of smoke behind at the shocked Rogue. Betsy smiled and shrugged at the younger girl. "He's just a bastard," Betsy said in a precise upper class British accent. "Don't take it personally."  
  
The sound of imploding air and the smell of sulfur heralded Kurt's arrival. Rogue sighed happily to see her foster brother. "Please tell me vhen it is time to get back to school," Kurt muttered to her. Rogue gave him the largest smile she could manage. "Amen."  
  
********  
  
I suck at accents. Ah well. R/R and let me know you wanna see more! In my head, I have the story lines for the Evo version of the "Soulsword", "Dream Nails" and other plotlines as well. Lemme know if you like! 


	2. Meggan's Halloween

Title: Meggan's Halloween Note: I really wanted to write a Halloween story since I can't go to the parade this year and needed some cheer. Only problem? The X-Men are supposed to be visiting Muir during the summer. So I know it's a bit of a leap, but go with me okay? It'll be fun, I promise. (  
  
*******  
  
Kurt sat on the edge of the cliffs of Muir, his tail lazily circling around him. The Scottish early morning air was cold, but it was nothing his fur couldn't handle. However, his fur couldn't do anything about the icy cold shivers that gripped his heart. Kurt sighed. He was homesick.  
  
Since when did Xavier's start being home, he asked himself. It was probably because he felt so connected with everyone there; they all honestly cared. But here he was on Muir with his foster sister and his best friend who still absolutely honestly cared about him. So why did he feel so lonely?  
  
How could he NOT feel lonely?  
  
Muir had been crazy the past few weeks with the amount of drama that was happening. Kitty and Piotr had gotten closer than ever, even though Piotr was spending an enormously large amount of time doting on his baby sister. Maybe that was why they had gotten so close. Kitty was an only child with divorced parents who had always slightly envied Rogue and Kurt their connection. And now here it was, almost an instant family. Illyana was adorable, he had to admit and the two girls got along very well even though Yana was only three. But from the moment she had seen Kitty, Yana had been attached to the girl which only cemented Piotr's adoration of Kitty. She had been spending so much time with those two that Kurt felt he had already lost his best friend.  
  
And his sister, too. Just last week, Remy had been a surprise appearance, announcing that he was done with being Magneto's lackey and had decided to pick the pockets of the good people of Scotland. Of course, the fact that Rogue was there had NOTHING to do with his sudden desire to live on Muir. The two Southerners had been participating in a bizarre sort of mating dance for nearly every second since he had been there, alternating between periods of constant bickering and half-hearted indifference of the other. Pete had started a bet over how long it would take before the two "did the bloody deed". And it might actually be possible, as Hank, Moira and Kitty (when she wasn't contemplating becoming a Rasputin) were hard at work to create something that could help Rogue control her power. Kurt knew it was just a matter of time before the three brains would figure something out. He had put himself down for three weeks for Rogue and Remy.  
  
And then there was Jono. Kurt had hoped that maybe the British teen would open up to him since he could understand what it was like to be physically different. A week before the X-Men arrived, Jono's mutant power had manifested itself and had successfully blown off half his chest and face. He now had no mouth and had to communicate telepathically. Originally Hank had hoped that he would be able to discover some way to perform some sort of plastic surgery to restore Jono's appearance, but it was just impossible. So Jono had now regulated himself to stalking around the research center in all black Goth clothes, moping and sulking almost non- stop. Kurt had initially felt sorry, but after Jono had several times told him off (in his head of course), he had given up on him.  
  
He couldn't help but feel incredibly frustrated with the whole Jono situation. The original reason for the X-Men to come to Muir was to help Jono as well as to see if he or any other inhabitants of Muir would be good recruits. Good old Charles, Kurt thought sarcastically, always recruiting.  
  
There had been only one bright spot in the last weeks. Meggan.  
  
It had been nearly impossible for Kurt to get to know the girl at first. She was skittish, reluctant to talk and almost always tailing Pete around. Kurt had thought at first that they were somehow involved, and he was disgusted at the idea of such a beautiful young girl being forced to spend time with the rude Brit. But as Meggan began to warm up to Kurt, he had gotten the whole story out of her.  
  
Initially, Kurt had also assumed that Meggan was hesitant to talk to Kurt because of his physical appearance. But as the beautiful blonde girl unveiled her story with tremulous eyes and trembling lips, he knew he was wrong. Meggan told him about her power: how she was an elemental and an empath, and her powers manifested in her physical appearance. Basically, she was able to change her appearance based on her surroundings. And when she was younger, she didn't have that much control over her power. She was surrounded by people's emotions and overwhelmed; as this continued, people began to become hostile to her. Because of this, she morphed into a horrible creature, complete with razor sharp teeth, an inhumane face and terrifying beast-like body.  
  
She was exiled from her town, and her condition immediately became worse. A group of baddies, as Meggan referred to them, had found out about her and hunted her down. They found her and caged her, tormenting and humiliating the girl, ensuring that her metamorphism to an animal became more and more complete. Meggan had no clue what they were intending to do with her but she lived in constant terror. That is, until the day Pete showed up. With tears in her eyes, Meggan told him of how Pete had come to her one day, setting her free and telling her that she wasn't an animal but a human. He had wanted her to escape without him, but she clung to him and they had gotten out together. And Pete had then brought Meggan, who thanks to Pete's kindness had started turning back into a human, to Muir hoping that Moira would be able to help Meggan.  
  
Hearing the story, Kurt had understood why Meggan had tagged around Pete so much, but he couldn't help but be jealous. With her long flowing hair and large eyes, Meggan was gorgeous and her naivety and innocence was touching. She believed just as strongly as Kurt in a world of chivalry: where the knights were brave and strong and the damsels were beautiful and in need of rescuing. Kurt knew that he couldn't help but see Meggan as such a damsel. But how could Meggan ever see him as a knight? She might understand what it was like to be physically different, but it didn't mean she had to like it. Maybe, Kurt worried, his physical appearance, tail and all, reminded her of her horrible transformation. Sighing, Kurt buried his head in his hands and engaged in a sulking session that would put Jono to shame.  
  
"Earth to Elf? Come in Elf!"  
  
Kurt was brought abruptly out of his thoughts and snapped around to see Kitty behind him, half of her legs still phased in the ground as she glared at him. "What are you doing here sulking?"  
  
He couldn't resist a smile at that. "Ah, Keety, you still know me."  
  
She sat next to him, looking at him suspiciously. "Of course I still know you, Kurt." She raised an eyebrow. "Is this about Piotr?"  
  
"Piotr?" He sighed. He still didn't trust Piotr completely, but he wanted Kitty to be happy. "No, not really." He looked over at Kitty and gave her his best puppy dog eyes. "I just viss my best friend, is all!"  
  
"Awr Kurt!!!" Kitty abruptly through her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. "Silly, I'm right here! You don't have to miss me!" She smiled knowingly. "I know who I think this is REALLY about."  
  
"Oh ja? Vho?"  
  
"Meggan."  
  
Kurt balked momentarily and then sighed, giving up. "Is it really that apparent?"  
  
"Only to me, best friend," she smiled, ruffling his fur. "But guess what. I have an idea."  
  
"Vhat?"  
  
"Well, as you know, O furry one, Meggan was assigned to be my roomie. And she's been really bummed lately. You see, all those years banished from people really made sure that she didn't engage in all those normal people stuff. Like holidays. And well, I was trying to explain the concept of Halloween to her last night, but she didn't get it. Sooo.."  
  
"Keety, are you suggesting vhat I think you are?" He smiled. "Halloween in July?"  
  
"Yeah, and get this! We could put everyone's name in a hat or something and then draw out a person and we get to pick that person's costume! I used to do that with my friends, soooo much fun. It'll help us all grow closer and that stuff. AND I will give you personally all the credit for this stellar idea. Major brownie points." She winked at him. "So what do you say Kurt?"  
  
Kurt hugged Kitty so hard he nearly broke her. "You're on!!"  
  
******  
  
"Why the bloody 'ell are we doing this?" Pete grumbled, his cigarette dangling from his mouth. He made a concentrated effort to make sure that the ashes from it landed close to Kitty.  
  
She scowled at him and handed the top hat over so that Pete could drop his name in. "Because it'll make Meggan happy."  
  
"Yeah!" the fey piped up, circling lazily down from the ceiling, dropping in the slip with her name on it as well. "It'll make me happy."  
  
Pete grumbled something about birds. Remy, on the other hand, seemed about as enthusiastic as Meggan. "I thin' this will be fun, mon ami." He leered over at Meggan, his eyes twinkling. "Maybe Remy will get you, eh chére?"  
  
Rogue glared at Remy as she threw her name into the hat. "You will NEVAH get me, swamp rat."  
  
"Play nice, children," Brian said, taking the hat before dropping his name in, shaking it so that it became properly mixed. Giving a smile to Kitty, he said, "I do believe that is all of us, right?"  
  
"What, Jono is not going to join us?" Betsy asked, frowning.  
  
"Nyet," Piotr jumped in. "And neither will Illyana.  
  
Betsy rolled her eyes. "Of course Illyana will not participate, Piotr. She's only three."  
  
Now it was Pitor's turn to frown. "Da, but that is not why. I have already selected her costume." He glared at a snickering Pete.  
  
"Okay," Kitty jumped in, trying to diffuse the tension. "Let's get started. Um- Pete, you wanna go first?"  
  
Everyone looked over to Pete. Remy was leaning towards him and was busy whispering something in his ear. Kitty did not like the smirk that was spreading across the Brit's face. "Um, Pete? Today?"  
  
"Alright, alright, keep your bloody knickers on, girl," Pete growled, reaching into the hat. He slowly pulled out a slip of paper, enjoying the suspense. Even slower, he unfolded the paper and looked down. "Oh will, you look at that." He looked up and beamed at Kitty. "Seems like I got you, Pryde."  
  
Kitty growled and slumped onto the floor. "It's official. God hates me." She looked around at the circle. "Do we really have to follow these stupid rules?"  
  
"Yes, we do, chat," Remy smirked, poking Kitty. "An' now I believe it be time for Pete to unveil your costume..?"  
  
All eyes looked expectantly at Pete. He was enjoying this even more than the suspense of unfolding the paper. "Hmmm.. Well, Pryde, I want to be sure to choose a costume worthy of ya." Ignoring Kitty's groan, he continued, "Therefore, I say it's got to be. a dominatrix."  
  
Kitty's draw dropped. "Oh you evil, horrible twisted old man-''  
  
"Next!" Meggan brightly announced. "Oh, can I pick?" She swooped down to the hat, closed her eyes and concentrated hard before selecting one. "Hey," she cried. "I got Pete!"  
  
Pete immediately stopped snickering. Kitty immediately stopped sulking. Soon, Kitty was smirking and Pete was sulking. "Oh Meggan," Kitty said innocently. "I don't want to influence your decision, but remember- it would be good to pick something that you really, really like."  
  
Kurt looked bemused at Kitty- what was she planning? The rest of the group appeared to be similarly confused, but Meggan took her words very seriously and closed her eyes, concentrating. "I've got it!" she suddenly announced, beaming.  
  
"Pete, I'm going to choose- an M&M!!!"  
  
*****  
  
The rest of the evening progressed without incident. Okay, that's not exactly true. It didn't pass with quite as much incident as Meggan revealing Pete's fate as a chocolate candy that was destined to melt in your mouth, not in your hand. Remy, who was apparently in some plot with Pete, had drawn Rogue and had decided that she should grab a corset and do her best Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rogue impression. Kurt decided that Piotr should be a Transformer (everyone had howled at the one except a very confused Piotr), Brian decided that Kurt should be a pirate (Kurt couldn't contain his happiness at that), and Piotr had decided that Betsy was to be a vampire (everyone booed at his lack of creativity). Betsy said that Meggan should be Moira, which had Meggan enthusiastically promising to study the woman to be 100% convincing. And, by a stroke of luck, Kitty drew Remy and decided to strike some revenge for her friend. Remy was to be a ballerina. And not just any ballerina. The prima dona ballerina, tutu, tiara and all. Lastly was Rogue, who had the inspired idea that Brian should be the Bride of Frankenstein.  
  
After the decisions were made, Meggan was about to fly off excited, before she stopped close to Kurt.  
  
"Er, Kurt?" Suddenly she was shy, biting her lip and looking up with him with big blue eyes.  
  
"Ja, Meggan?" His stomach somersaulted. His jaw dropped as he saw that Meggan was slowly beginning to change right in front of him, without her being even aware of it.  
  
"Do you think that maybe we could help each other with our costumes? I mean, unless, you want to do it with someone else-''  
  
"Nein," Kurt smiled. "I wouldn't want to do it with anyone but you.  
  
"Great!!!" And with that Meggan bounded off, leaving behind a very happy and very surprised Kurt. For just before she left, Meggan had completed her transformation. For a few moments she was covered in blue fur, had long black locks and a nervously twitching tail. Kurt couldn't remember ever seeing anything quite as beautiful.  
  
He was barely aware when Kitty came up to him. "You know," she said, "it's almost worth it to wear a cat suit just to see this look on your face, fuzzy elf."  
  
"Ja," Kurt replied, his mind swimming with happiness, "it is worth it."  
  
********  
  
Shorter than I had intended, but guess what! It's not done! Nooooo. we gotta see everyone in their costumes, right? And now to respond to some reviews.  
  
RahneMan- Stay tuned! After all, what's pseudo-Halloween without out very own werewolf? And yes, I definitely want to introduce Lockheed and I'm trying to figure out how to work Doug into this mess to.  
  
Melissarxy1- Yep, shameless Pink Floyd reference there. One of my fave songs, so I figure I have the right. ( And sorry, it's going to have some Kiotr in it, but maybe just for while. For more, look below.  
  
Anything but ordinary3- You know, that might just happen. *wink*  
  
So look for the next chapter, and review to your hearts content! 


	3. A Note

Since there's some confusion over the characters, I thought it would be best to add this little note about everyone's age and power.  
  
Kitty Pryde- 16, Intangibility  
  
Kurt Wagner- 17, Teleportation  
  
Rogue- 17, Absorption of memories, skills and special powers  
  
Piotr Rasputin- 19, Organic Steel  
  
Pete Wisdom- 26, Produces Heat knives  
  
Brian Braddock- 20, superhuman strength, speed, endurance, reflexes, and invulnerability, flight  
  
Betsy Braddock-20, Telekinetic  
  
Remy LeBeau- 22, convert an object's stored potential energy into explosive kinetic energy  
  
Meggan-15, elemental, empathy and shape shifter  
  
Illyana Rasputin- 3, none (as of yet :P)  
  
Jonothon Starsmore- 17, bionuclear energy discharges, telepathy 


	4. Tootoos and Bulges

Title: Too-toos and Bulges  
  
Note: I'm slow, I'm slow, I'm sorry! Not all of us can be as speedy and talented as melissarxy1 who, coincidently, this chappie is dedicated to since she's been on my back, lol. Enjoy all!  
  
**************  
  
He was alone in his room, and that was exactly the way he liked it.  
  
He could hear them outside, running up and down the halls. There was a pause and then a growl, followed by several girls shrieking, some curses in French and several exclamations "ow".  
  
Jono knew what they were doing out there. He had heard all about it from Illyana. And even if the little girl hadn't told him, he still would have been able to tell from the very loud surface emotions of everyone else.  
  
He wondered how Meggan could stand it, always hearing all these other voices.  
  
And then he realized. She could stand it because she could talk back to them. Meggan could stand it because she had a mouth.  
  
Which was a lot more than Jono could say for himself.  
  
He sighed, turning up the volume of his Bauhaus CD. He knew he was moping and engaging in pathetic self-pity, but he didn't care. He figured he had an excuse. After all, half of his chest and face had been blown off by the energy inside him, the energy that at this very moment was cooking his insides. He would never smile again, never be able to be completely bare without killing, never be able to sing again.  
  
He thought of his girl back in London. Of what was left of her.  
  
The newcomers had tried their best to draw him out. One by one they had filed in, smiling nervously. None of them had freaked out at having Jono talk to them inside their head, but all of them had regarded his bandages nervously. McCoy had tried long and hard to discover some way to repair his body, but to no avail. Their visits had gradually decreased and nearly stopped. Illyana was the only who saw him regularly, and Pete was the only one Jono could really stand.  
  
Sure, Illyana was adorable, but he knew that part of the reason she kept coming back was because he was a freak, he entertained her. She constantly giggled whenever she felt him in her head and Jono thought she was laughing at him.  
  
Pete was bearable. He had strong mental shields, thanks to some covert group no one knew about, so when Pete was around, it was quite. And Pete didn't give him any BS either. None of that "we'll fix everything soon" junk that McCoy and MacTaggerat so often spouted. Instead, Pete came to see what he was up to, insulted his taste in music and prodded him into going after one of the girls. When Jono asked him why he bothered to visit him, Pete would say it was because Jono was the only other Brit there, and REAL Brit, not fancy-pants Brit like Betsy and Brian.  
  
Jono suspected that somewhere, deep down, Pete actually cared, but he wasn't going to ruin his reputation for him.  
  
And now Pete had joined with the Americans, dressing up for Halloween in the middle of July. Part of Jono could understand it; after all, most of those living on Muir had never had Halloween and it served to lighten the mood. But it was ridiculous and childish and, worst of all, it was noisy.  
  
**************  
  
"Kitty? Open up, its mah," Rogue cried, leaning against her friend's door. Her eyes kept fluttering up and down the hallway nervously. "Open the door, dammit!"  
  
"I'm coming, I'm coming," Kitty muttered on the other side. "Jeez, why are you so worked up-". The words fell dead on Kitty's lips as she opened the door and saw Rogue.  
  
Standing there, hand on hip, was a very unhappy looking French courtesan, complete with a red and black corset, a red ruffled skirt, fishnets, black gloves and a large red feather decorating a luxurious up-do. Kitty burst out laughing.  
  
"Who would have thought you could find such a great can-can girl outfit in Scotland?" Kitty giggled, pulling Rogue into the room. Meggan, who was lazily floating above her bed, looked over at Rogue with interest.  
  
"Oh Rogue, you look great!!!" she exclaimed excitedly, zipping over to get a closer look with her wide eyes. She scowled. "Why are you so upset?"  
  
"AH AM NAKED!!!!!" Rogue exclaimed, and a startled Meggan reeled backward and perched on the top of the bedroom's dresser, gazing at Rogue curiously. Kitty just started laughing more.  
  
"Oh come on, Rogue," she managed through some giggles. "You're completely clothed!"  
  
"Yeah," Meggan added, "if you were naked, you would not be wearing clothes. Right?"  
  
"Yeah, well, ah FEEL naked," Rogue growled, landing on Kitty's bed with a heavy sigh. "Ah can't remember when ah had so much skin exposed." She peered nervously at Kitty. "Ah'm worried ah'll hurt someone."  
  
Kitty gave the girl an encouraging smile. "You know, I thought maybe you might feel like that. Which is why I picked this up for you at the costume shop." She revealed a nude-colored body suit. "Wear this under your costume, it'll be just like wearing your colors."  
  
Rogue managed a small smile. "Thanks, Kitty." Now that she didn't feel so exposed, she got a good look at her friend. Kitty was clad in an impossibly tight black leather cat suit that covered her from foot to toe. Lying next to Rogue on the bed was a whip, cat-o-nine tails style. "Wow," Rogue breathed. "You really got into this."  
  
Kitty blushed a deep red as Meggan giggled from her perch. "Yeah, well, I couldn't let the boys win."  
  
"That's not the ooooonly reason!" Meggan sing-songed, smiling wide.  
  
Rogue looked up at the girl, smiling back. "What do you mean?"  
  
Meggan, ignoring Kitty's pleas that she keep quiet, floated down close to Rogue. "Kitty wants to get Piotr's attention."  
  
"Meggan!" groaned Kitty, collapsing back on the bed with the other two girls and face-palmed.  
  
"Aw, its okay, Kit," Rogue grinned. "We all knew that anyway." The three dissolved into giggles and didn't notice someone picking the locked door to their bedroom until the door swung open and Remy pounced in.  
  
"Grondement!" Remy exclaimed, smiling wide despite the fact that he was wearing a tight pink leotard, a pink too too and a sparkly tiara. "Wh' do ya not invite de Gambit to des megangue a triox?"  
  
"Get out!" Rogue screamed, jumping up and slapping Remy playfully, pushing him out of the door. "Get out, you pervy swamp rat!!!"  
  
Remy successfully banished from the room, Rogue fell back with the bewildered girls, giggling madly as they discussed Remy's outfit.  
  
"Rogue," Kitty began playfully, "I know you threw him out, but your eyes didn't leave his.. ahem, BULGE the entire time."  
  
Meggan dissolved into giggles as Rogue shrieked and attacked Kitty with a handy nearby pillow.  
  
Remy stalked back to the boy's wing, holding his head high even as he adjusted his tiara. Pete was waiting for him, leaning against the wall and enjoying yet another cigarette.  
  
"Well, Frenchie?" he asked, flicking the embers of the cig, "how are the girls?"  
  
Remy grinned at him. "Goregous." Then a wicked smile came across his face. "De Kitty is lookin' specially good."  
  
Pete snorted, and Remy noticed that his calm façade faltered for a moment. "Why would I bloody care?" "Come on, mon ami," Remy leered, "Nous tout sait que vous voulez le petit chat."  
  
"Hey," Pete growled. "Foreign languages aint fair."  
  
At that very moment, a bamf heralded the arrival of the one, the only Pirate Kurt. "Eile! Wir sind spät!" he cried, before disappearing as he teleported away.  
  
"Bloody foreigners," Pete scowled, kicking out the stub of his cigarette as Piotr and Brian emerged from their shared room.  
  
Piotr clearly had no idea what a Transformer was, and Pete doubted that Brian was much help. Piotr was armored up and wearing chrome roller skates and clothes that looked like they were made out of tin foil. He shrugged sheepishly at the raised eyebrows.  
  
Brian, on the other hand, was a sight. He made possibly the ugliest woman ever. Betsy had obviously enjoyed helping him out with his costume as he wore one of her black dresses that was clearly too small for him. He was stumbling around in black high heels, and the only part of the costume he seemed okay with was the black and white wig fastened to his head.  
  
Brian glared at the men snickering at him. "Oh, shut it, LeBeau. May I remind you which one of us is wearing a too too?"  
  
"Cheap shot, mon ami."  
  
"Comrade Wisdom," Piotr spoke up, "where is your costume? I do believe Meggan requested you to dress up as an M&M, da?"  
  
"We don't eat M&M's in bloody Europe," Pete growled. "I was set up."  
  
"Well Pete, frankly I don't care if the Queen of England put Meggan up to this. The fact remains that you must wear your costume," Brian huffed.  
  
"Oh yah? Or wot?"  
  
"Or I will sic a very disappointed and angry Meggan on you," Brian answer. "Now go."  
  
"Alrigh'," Pete growled. "But this is only for Meg. Meet ya all there, right?"  
  
**************  
  
Later in the main room, the party was limping along to its closing. While much fuss has been made over Pete's blue M&M costume and Yana had been adorable in her angel outfit, there was only so much trick or treating that could be done when there were only two places to go for candy.  
  
Meggan, who had transformed herself completely into Moira much to the woman's chagrin, pouted as she hovered next to Kurt. "Is this all Halloween is about?"  
  
"Nyet, little Meggan," Piotr replied, "I do believe it is also about getting sick from candy and telling ghost stories."  
  
Kitty instantly perked up. "Ghost stories! Yeah, that's exactly what we need!" She plopped down on the floor, Kurt, Meggan and Rogue all dutifully following. She placed Illyana in her lap, smiling as she smoothed down the little girl's blonde hair. Piotr and Brian sat down reluctantly and eventually Pete and Remy would join as well.  
  
"Okay, guys," Kitty said, smiling, "it's time for one of Kitty's famous tales of horror."  
  
Pete immediately snorted. "Bloody yanks."  
  
**************  
  
YEAH! A Kitty tale! For all of you who remember the bedtime stories that Kitty used to tell little Illyana, you know the next chapter will be good. *big smiles* . So keep reading! Oh, and Rahne WILL make an appearance soon, I promise!!!! 


	5. Kitty's Tale: A Scottish Werewolf InScot...

Title: Kitty's Tale: A Scottish Werewolf in..err.. Scotland  
  
******************  
  
Once, long ago, in a place actually quite near here, there was an old abandoned cottage. The local people said that it was haunted and a whole bunch of ghosts lived there, but no one was brave enough to stick around and check.  
  
Now, also on this dark and creepy night, a band of travelers were coming through the forest, unknowingly heading straight towards the haunted cottage.  
  
The leader of this group was Hank the Brave, a strong and intelligent man. With him were different children that he had gathered from around the world. This group was on their way to visit Queen Moira, to offer her a gift from King Charlie from another kingdom.  
  
Among this group was Kurt the Daring, a swashbuckling and charming young pirate, Piotr the Bold, who was tall and strong as a steel wall, the mysterious young magician known only as Rogue and the beautiful and graceful Princess Kitty.  
  
What? Shut up, Pete. Fine, have it your way. Princess *Katherine*. Stupid royals.  
  
Anyway, they were a whole bunch of them and they were walking through the forest together, heading straight for the haunted cottage. Kurt tried to keep their spirits up by singing old sea shanties but after the eighth verse of a particularly bad one, Rogue set a curse on him so that he would shut up.  
  
They continued on in quiet as the forest grew darker.  
  
"Sir Hank?" Piotr the Bold asked, "are you sure that we have not gotten lost?"  
  
Hank the Brave stopped, took out a compass and looked around. "You know, I think we may just have."  
  
"Fear not, kind sirs," Princess Katherine said regally, "I am sure that with my superior intellect we will be able to-"  
  
Fine, fine, fine. Jeez. Everyone's a critic.  
  
"You got us lost?" Princess Katherine whined, "I wasn't made to go wandering through forests!"  
  
"Especially haunted one," Rogue muttered.  
  
Katherine whirled on the enigmatic girl. "What did you say?"  
  
"It is nothing," Hank the Brave assured her. "Just a superstitious legend."  
  
"Yeah, just a superstitious legend about even the strongest of men and bravest of hunters getting lost in these woods, never to be heard from again," Rogue said.  
  
Kurt struggled to talk and sighing, Rogue removed her curse. "My God! What have you gotten us into, Sir Hank? I hope it is something from which my charming personality and dashing good looks will be able to save us!"  
  
"Well, if the murderous ghosts who live here think your cute, then I'm sure we'll be fine," Rogue snickered.  
  
"Ep!" shrieked Princess Katherine, who jumped behind Piotr the Bold for protection.  
  
"Children, children," Hank the Brave chided. "I thought all of you were smarter than to fall for local legend. Now come along, let us hurry to Queen Moira."  
  
Muttering and sighing, the band continued on their way with Katherine clinging desperately to Piotr's arm.  
  
Soon, they reached a clearing. On the edge of this clearing was the abounded cottage of legend. And just as they came upon it, the sky opened up and it began to pour.  
  
"Hurry!" Hank the Brave said. "We must seek shelter in that cottage!"  
  
"But that is the haunted cottage of legend!" Rogue exclaimed, looking around nervously. Piotr and Kurt only shrugged, following after Hank towards the shelter of the building. Katherine had already darted inside.  
  
"Ugh!" Katherine sighed. "Just LOOK at this dress! It's COMPLETELY ruined." She turned to glare at Hank the Brave. "You're paying my cleaning bill."  
  
"Didn't anyone hear what I said?" squeaked Rogue. "This place is haunted!"  
  
"Relax, sister," said Kurt, who was her foster brother since his mother, who was also his father, had taken Rogue in when she was little, after he/she had given up Kurt...  
  
Oh, whatever.  
  
"Relax, friend," said Kurt. "I am sure that nothing is wrong. Besides, it is good to get out of the rain, yes?"  
  
"Yes," agreed Piotr enthusiastically. "I was afraid I would rust out there in the rain."  
  
Everyone looked at him with dubious expressions. "Say whaaaa?" Rogue muttered.  
  
"Well, children," Hank jumped in, "as long as we are here, we should take advantage of this shelter. I say that we spend the night here and wait out the storm. Now, as I'm sure you are all as tired as I, I advise we try to catch some sleep."  
  
With that, the group disbanded, scattering to different bedrooms. And, in quite a short time, the weary travelers had all fallen asleep, even the nervous Rogue.  
  
That is, until Rogue heard the distinct sound of footsteps in her room and jumped up out of her sleep.  
  
She screamed as she saw two demonic red eyes staring at her. Slowly, the rest of the body began to materialize around it. Rogue began sweating in her nightgown as the ghost stood at the foot of her bed, glaring at her.  
  
"Greetings, mon ami," it sneered.  
  
"Oh no," Rogue whispered. "It's the dreaded French ghost, the Rat of Swamp!!!!!"  
  
The Rat only smirked more as a staff appeared in his hands. He moved towards her menacingly and Rogue screamed more one more time before she passed out from the fright.  
  
Elsewhere, Rogue's screams had awakened the rest of the sleeping travelers. Piotr the Bold was instantly at his feet and was clamoring towards the door in order to save a possible damsel in distress when suddenly he found his path blocked.  
  
Ahead of him stood a guy and a girl. They both looked particularly normal, except for the fact that they were both decapitated and holding their heads in their hands.  
  
"Why do you run?" the girl's head asked.  
  
"Stay and have some fun!" the guy chimed in.  
  
"Stand back, foul creatures!" Piotr demanded, for he was very bold indeed. "I have to go find a damsel to rescue!"  
  
Both heads laughed and to Piotr's horror, the two figures began to juggle their heads! Even as the heads were flying in the air, they continued to speak to him in teasing voices.  
  
"Stay and play with us," the girl's head taunted.  
  
"Or..er.. get hit by a bus!!!!" the guy's head added lamely.  
  
Piotr cocked his head to the side. "That was a horrible rhyme."  
  
"Everyone's a critic," growled the girl's head as it returned to its rightful owner.  
  
The guy's head looked bemused and seemed to concentrate for several moments before saying, "I don't like rhetoric!"  
  
A few bedrooms away, Katherine was not having such an enjoyable time. Instead, she was pacing her room, trying to figure out what to do. She had just conquered her nerves and was about to see what was wrong with Rogue when her room became covered with a heavy fog. Accompanying the smoke was a most fowl odor.  
  
Coughing, trying desperately to breath, Katherine collapsed on the floor, clutching her throat. She looked up to see a male figure emerging from the smoke.  
  
But this was no normal man. No, instead this man had twenty four arms and each hand was holding a lit and burning cigarette.  
  
"Oh no!" coughed Katherine. "It's the dreaded Emphysema Man!"  
  
Stop snickering, Pete. It's a bad habit and it's going to kill you.  
  
I DON'T care about you, matter of fact. I just don't like dead people lying around.  
  
Now, if I could PLEASE get back to the story..  
  
Oh, don't cry Illyana. Don't worry, the Emphysema Man will get an intervention and he'll be fine. No one's gonna die.  
  
What? What are you saying, Yana? You hear a wolf? Not a wolf? A...werewolf?!  
  
**********************  
  
Kitty looked up, alarmed, clutching the sobbing little girl to her. Piotr had instantly gone into panic mode, scrambling over to his little sister while the rest of them looked surprised.  
  
"C'mon Pryde," Pete growled, flicking his cigarette, "this supposed to be some kind of Halloween prank?" He looked over to the nervous Meggan who had reverted back to her original form and darted behind his back.  
  
"No, I swear," Kitty said emphatically. "I have no clue what she's talking about."  
  
Suddenly, everyone was silent as they heard a loud, echoing howl coming from close by.  
  
"Yana," Kitty said, frantically, "why do you think that's a werewolf?"  
  
"Cuz," the girl sniffed, "only werewolves come out at hollow inn."  
  
"That's Halloween," Piotr corrected gently, "and it is not even Halloween, so don't be scared."  
  
"It's not Halloween?" Illyana blinked her blue tearful eyes. "Everyone.. lied?!" She soon broke out into another bout of hysterics.  
  
Pete growled and muttered something about shutting the rugrat up. "Look, gel," he said to Illyana, "if there's a werewolf, it would come to get us, right? Well, look, I'm gonna go to the door and nothin' gonna happen, see?"  
  
The whole room was silent as Pete strode to the front door and threw it open. He stood there smirking for a few moments when they all again heard another piercing howl, this time much closer. Before anyone could react, a crimson wolf bounden through the door, past Pete and stopping short in front of the shocked group.  
  
Piotr jumped to the front, shielding both Kitty and Illyana. "You will not hurt my friends!" he bellowed. "Now leave!"  
  
"Dat be a wolf," Remy muttered, "Wolves no understan' English."  
  
But apparently, this wolf did as it slowly stood on its hind legs. "Kitty? Kurt? Rogue?" it squeaked incredulously. Slowly the fur retracted to leave one scantly were-girl.  
  
"RAHNE!" Kitty, Kurt and Rogue all screamed, running to attack the Scots girl with hugs. The rest of the group stood bemused, except for little Illyana who tottered up to Scot and rubbed the slight fur that remained on her legs.  
  
"You're furry like Kurt!" the girl squealed happily. "Are you his momma?"  
  
"Nae, ye wee one," Rahne giggled, messing up Illyana's hair affectionately. "But he is me friend."  
  
Rahne then looked up and around at the various figures around the room, taking in dominatrix Kitty, French hooker Rogue, the M&M at the door and the male ballerina with an incredibly tight leotard.  
  
"Can sumone tell me what's gonna on here?!"  
  
**************  
  
YEAH! Now wasn't that cute! So there ya go, I got Rahne in there for you Rahneman, on the same day that you got Kitty!!! Wow, look at the coincidences.  
  
Incidentally, this might be one of the last really fluffy pieces for a while. I've got major plans for these European (and Kitty and Rogue) mutants and there is going to be a fair share of action, adventure, and my favorite word- ANGST! BAWAHAHA!!!  
  
Er, yeah. But there will be good times again, so don't bail on me people! Thanks for all the reviews, I very much appreciate em :) 


	6. Three

Title: Three  
  
Note: Okay, I'm holding off the angst for a bit since everyone seems so against it! This is just a little interlude I cooked up, since I figured that I hadn't explained how Illyana got to Muir. Next chappie- lots of Kete and Romy!!! YAAAYY! And THEN there will be angst.  
  
Well, EVENTUALLY there will be angst, okay? So prepare yourself! This one's for RahneMan- go read his story, folks! VERY funny and it's got tons of cultural references (test yourself to see how much you know) and two chaps dedicated to me *blush* lol  
  
*******************  
  
Hi. My name is Illyana Rasputin and I'm this many years old. Three. My brother Piotr is a lot more years older. So are all of his friends. I think they all count off their hands and their feet, that's how old they are! But they're nice and I like them, so it's okay that they can't count with their toes.  
  
I like Kitty the best because she tells me stories and she's pretty. Piotr says that she is his special friend which makes me upset because I want to be special too but then he says that he likes her, and I say I like her too, but then he says that it is kinda like mommy and daddy. I get that. I play house. Mommy and daddy friends do things that other friends can't, like kiss.  
  
I want Jono to be my special friend but he can't kiss me. 'Sides, I don't wanna kiss him because that's gross! I just wanna have someone special. Piotr says that will come later.  
  
Kurt would be a good special friend because he's all fuzzy like a teddy bear and he has a tail like a cat that I can pull. He says he doesn't like that, but he is always laughing so I don't think he is truthing. But I saw him giving daddy kisses to Meg, who is blonde like me but much, much prettier. Piotr and Kitty both say I'm pretty but I'm just a little kid, so I can't be pretty yet. Maybe one day I can be pretty like Meg or Kitty who both get mommy kisses and I will marry a daddy. That would probably be fun.  
  
I don't like being stuck on this island. There are too many adults. Hank and Moira. Moira gets mad at me a lot when I play around with her tools and stuff, and I don't like that. Hank is okay, he's fuzzy too, but he likes to say a lot of big words. I don't think he knows that I'm only three. But I am.  
  
When I first got here, it was only Moira and the other people and no Piotr, Kurt, Kitty or Hank. Moira kept asking me questions about how I got there, and they made me cry. I kept telling her, but she thought I was fibbing. But I wasn't, honest!!! I told her all about the pretty woman in the hood who picked me up outside my house and took me to them. Moira kept saying that she had not seen the woman and was I really telling the truth until I wouldn't stop crying. I keep trying to talk to Piotr about the pretty woman, but he says that I shouldn't make up stories, but I'm not telling stories!!! It makes me sad and angry. No one listens to you when you're only three.  
  
I wish I was old, like Moira and pretty like Meggan, or the lady who took me here. Cuz then people would listen to me. And then I would get mommy kisses.  
  
************************  
  
So good? She's a very smart three year old, okay?  
  
Anything but ordinary3- so you're one of the few who reads this one and Stars in December! Bless you! ( Oh, and tattoos are fun too, almost as fun as too-toos. Almost.  
  
Lanx- Pervert. :D  
  
melissarxy1- Look how quickly I'm updating!!! Are you proud of me? *big grins*  
  
RahneMan- I owe you? You won't settle for just a ton of nice reviews? Fine, maybe you'll get your wish soon..maybe. BAWAHAHA 


	7. Moonage Daydream

Title: Moonage Daydream  
  
Note: A pure fluff fic. Since EVERYONE seems to be soooo anti-angst, I'm keeping it light and fluffy and romantic. And there's TONS of romance in this! Kete, Romy, Merty and even an introduction of a certain character in the end! Oh la la! You just know you wanna read.  
  
Lightspeed Suzuka and melissarxy1- I'm glad the Kete term is catching! lol, I've gotten so bad, that when I try to talk about Kitty and Pete, I always end up with saying either Kete or Pitty. Bizzaro.  
  
And special thanks to Lightspeed Suzuka for adding me to the favorites list! :)  
  
anythingbutordinary3- Thanks for reading both stories!!! I really appreciate it since Stars in December means a lot to me since I got this whooooole vision for it.  
  
RahneMan- RahneMan, RahneMan, RahneMan. What to say? You're crazy in the best way possible and everyone should go read your story. That is all.  
  
*hi*= telepathy  
  
****************  
  
Kitty stormed to her room, thankful that Meggan was nowhere in sight. After getting up at a hellish early hour to work out with Brian's latest training program, she had spent hours fixing what Brian had screwed up and had to suffer through Brian's chauvinistic rants that it COULDN'T have been him that broke it.  
  
Kitty needed to blow off some major steam.  
  
She looked around, grateful that everyone seemed to be gone, either training or off on their own, exploring. From what she had seen, she was the only one in the center. She quickly phased out of her sweaty uniform and into a light pair of sweats and a lacy top. She scurried to the closet, carefully removing all of the hidden safety precautions, finally getting her treasure under the floorboards. She drew it out, triumphant.  
  
David Bowie. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.  
  
Exxxxxxxxxcellent.  
  
She popped the CD in, switched to her current favorite track, leaped over on top of her bed and began to lip sync her heart out.  
  
"I'm an alligator; I'm a mama-papa comin' for you I'm the space invader; I'll be a rock 'n' rolling bitch for you Keep your mouth shut, you're squawking like a pink monkey bird And I'm busting up my brains for the words  
  
Keep you 'lectric eye on me babe Put your ray gun to my head Press your space face close to mine, love Freak out in a moonage daydream, oh yeah!"  
  
Elsewhere, Pete stumbled into the center, his hangover giving him a severe headache that he just couldn't shake. And that loud music wasn't helping none either.  
  
But wait a second.  
  
This wasn't the Goth and metal that came from Rogue's CD player. Or the classic fuddy-duddy rock from Brian's. It wasn't Betsy's techno and it wasn't the bizarre circus tunes that could be heard coming from Kurt's room at night. It wasn't Meggan's boy band junk and it CERTAINLY wasn't Rahne's religious stuff.  
  
No. This was actually GOOD music.  
  
And it was coming, wonder of wonders, from the girl's wing.  
  
Pete stomped after it, completely confused about who could actually have the musical sense to listen to some classic glam rock Bowie. Maybe Rogue had developed some taste. Or maybe Illyana was a closet Bowie fan. That seemed as likely an explanation as any.  
  
Pete didn't know what to expect to find, but he certainly didn't expect to find Kitty on her bed, clad in tight clothing, gyrating with the music and lip synching with such intensity that she had her eyes squeezed shut.  
  
"Don't fake it baby, lay the real thing on me The church of man, love, is such a holy place to be Make me baby, make me know you really care Make me jump into the air"  
  
Pete began to smirk as Kitty, still intensely lost in the song, ran her hands down the sides of her body and swirled, her lithe body moving gracefully and seductively.  
  
"Ahem." Pete cleared his throat, leaning against the wall.  
  
Kitty immediately jumped to attention. Her eyes widened as she saw Pete there and her mouth opened. Her chain of curses was efficiently blocked out by the still booming song.  
  
Smirking and enjoying every moment, Pete sauntered over to the player and turned it off, managing to catch just the end of the girl's tirade.  
  
"Such language," he said playfully. "To be honest Pryde, I didn't think you had it in ya."  
  
"Look," Kitty started tersely, "I've been having a real bad day and I don't need you breathing down my neck about my bad taste in music, so you can just-"  
  
"Wait." Pete held up a hand. "Who said anything about bad taste?"  
  
Kitty jumped down from her bed so she stood across from Pete. She glared at him. "C'mon, go ahead, I know you want to. Scott and Rogue and everyone else are always on my case about listening to this kind of music."  
  
"What do you care what those bloody toerags think? Bunch of pounces, not enjoying some Bowie. He sat down, looking at the CD case. "You know, my dad actually went to the last Ziggy concert at Hammersmith Odeon. Used to be not a complete bastard back then."  
  
Kitty blinked. "You LIKE Bowie too?"  
  
"'Course. And then you got the Velvet Underground, T. Rex, the Sex Pistols, the Ramones.."  
  
"Hey Mr. Wisdom," Kitty smiled, a hand on her hip, "maybe you're actually cool, despite your old age."  
  
"Watch it, Miss Pryde," Pete smirked, stepping a bit closer, "you might actually make me think you like me."  
  
*************  
  
"Remy is gla' you decided ta take des walk wit' me, Roguey," Remy smiled, moving closer to Rogue who was shivering in the cold Scottish air.  
  
"Yeah, Ah'm sure," Rogue muttered, gazing out at the ocean churning beneath them.  
  
"Wat's wrong, ma chere?" he asked.  
  
"Why does everyone think Ah'm upset?! An' DON'T call mah 'chere'!" she snapped.  
  
"Rogue, I dink des is why people dink your upset," Remy muttered reassuringly.  
  
Rogue sighed, plopping down on the ground, pulling her legs up into her chest and hugging herself. "Ah'm sorry. Ah shouldn't have snapped at you."  
  
Remy sat down next to her, slipping his trench coat around the cold girl. "Try an' talk to me, Roguey."  
  
She shrugged. "Ah didn't think you cared."  
  
"Well, Remy does. So talk."  
  
"Okay, Ah got several things wron'. First, why the hell did yah come here? Don't say it was because of me, because that's just gonna piss me off more. What do you think you can do, try to kill me and then trick me into helping you only to run off all cryptic-like and then just show up here and expect to sweep me off your feet?! Well, it aint gonna work like that, and I'm tired of everyone giving me lectures about you when I don't need it, because I don't even LIKE you and I just wanna go somewhere where I'll have some space, no people up my butt AND no you!!!!"  
  
A stunned silence. A few blinks of red eyes. "Did ya know that you lose your accen' when ya get mad?"  
  
Rogue gave a large sigh, her head collapsing into her hands. "Do ya see?! This is why ah can't stand bein' around ya." She looked up, out into the horizon. Her red hair fluttered about her face, veiling her. "Ya know mah so well for some god damn reason."  
  
Remy leaned in closer. "Is dat what scares ya?"  
  
She shivered, leaning farther away from him. "Ya know what scares mah? Ah don't know what ya want."  
  
"What des dat mean?"  
  
She sighed. "It means Ah don't know what ya want from mah. You can't want anything.. ya know.. physical from mah, so Ah don't know what ya want."  
  
"Ya know what, Rogue," Remy said, quietly, seriously, "I didn' really know why I wante' to come here either at firs'." Another heavy sigh from Rogue as she hugged her body closer. "I didn't wanna. But I ha' des urge to come when I heard all of ya were gonna be here."  
  
"Why?" she muttered. "Wanted ta see Kit?"  
  
"Petite chat?" Remy laughed. "Non. Remy wanted to see ya."  
  
"But that's the point!" Rogue whirled on him, glaring. "Why mah? Ya can't touch mah! Ah'm no good!"  
  
"Non, chere," he said softly. "Ya are good."  
  
"But Ah thought ya didn't wanna come?"  
  
"Oui." He nodded. "Remy didn't thin' he could ever be good enough for ya."  
  
"But you're perfec'." She gazed at him with large eyes. "You're gorgeous and charmin' and ya can touch."  
  
"Hey," Remy smiled at her, "two ou' of three aint bad, chere."  
  
"Ya think Ah'm gorgeous?" She blinked, biting her lip. "Ah didn't even think ya liked mah."  
  
He laughed. "I better like ya if I came all of thi' way."  
  
She blushed. "Ah.. Ah don't know what the point of liking mah is."  
  
"Be kind to Remy, Rogue," he said, gazing with her as she stood up and began to move away. "I like ya. Now wha' 'bout you?"  
  
"Ah don' know wha' good it is, Remy," she said softly, throwing it over her shoulder, "but ah do like ya."  
  
For a long time, Remy stayed there, staring out at the water, churning underneath him, long after she had left him there. The sun had risen to nearly its highest point and his heart felt at about the same position. Don't sweat it, he told himself. It could only get better from here.  
  
***********************  
  
"Meg, Meg, Meg!!!" Illyana jumped up and down on her bed, her blonde hair flying everywhere. "Meg, Meg Meg, Meg, MEG!!!"  
  
Meggan swooped in, scooping Illyana up and plopping down on Yana's bed with the little girl secure in her arms. "What, Yana, Yana, YANA?"  
  
Illyana giggled, squirming out of her arms. "Can we fly again?"  
  
Meg smiled, shaking her head. "I don't know if your brother would like it."  
  
"AWWWW!" Illyana pouted, giving Meg her cutest look. "But he is not here! I won't say nothing."  
  
Meg ruffled the little girl's hair. "No, sweetie. Your bother gets nervous. He cares a lot about you, you know."  
  
"Yeah, yeah," Illyana huffed. "Piotr's a pain in the you-know-what."  
  
"Illyana Rasputin!!!" Meg crossed her arms across her chest, putting on her sternest look. "What language! For that, you must be subjected to a--- - tickle attack!!!!"  
  
"No!!!!!" Illyana screeched, giggling as she fell under Meg who began tickling her mercilessly.  
  
Standing just outside the open bedroom door was Kurt, passing through to the boy's wing. He smiled, gazing at the beaming Meggan. Suddenly an arm was snacked around his and he was pulled away down the hall.  
  
"Was?!" a startled Kurt said, spinning around to face a grinning Betsy.  
  
"The key to winning a lady's heart is not by spying on her, Wagner," she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder.  
  
Kurt sighed and began to follow Betsy down the hall. "Is it vhat obvious?"  
  
With another smirk, Betsy turned to face Kurt. "Don't forget that I'm a telepath." *I can read your mind, Wagner.*  
  
Kurt jumped in the air, surprised by hearing Betsy inside his head. "No matter how much Professor Xavier does vhat, I vill never get used to it," he said, shaking his head.  
  
Betsy shrugged and the two continued walking down the hallway. "There are some things you should know about Meg," she said.  
  
"Like was?"  
  
"Well, I believe that Meg has already told you something about her past, about how she ended up here with us." Betsy looked very serious, concerned. "But as soon as she got here, she had a mental breakdown. Moira says that Meg is most likely repressing a lot of stuff that happened to her, probably too horrible to deal with. She's fragile, Wagner. And very impressionable. The only reason I'm telling you this is because I like you. I think you're good for her. But you have to be careful with her, okay?"  
  
Kurt suppressed a smile. He felt a charge of pride shoot through his body at the thought that Betsy trusted him to help out Meggan. "I promise, Betsy. You don't have to vorry!"  
  
****************  
  
"Mum?" Rahne poked her head into Moria's lab, looking around for the older woman who served as her foster mother. "Can I talk to ye?"  
  
Moira swirled around on her chair to face Rahne with an exhausted smile on her face. "Och, ye can talk ta me anytime, Rahne, ye know that."  
  
"It's just that yuir so busy," Rahne said demurely, gesturing to the mess of paperwork and machines scattered around the lab. "I dinnea want ta intrude."  
  
"Rahne darling," Moira said, giving the girl a big hug, "ye could never intrude. In fact, ye save meself from this mess of work here."  
  
Rahne smiled. "How's it going? Ye and Mr. McCoy making any progress?"  
  
Moira sighed, rubbing her temple. "With Jono, nay. But we may be on the road to helpin' Rogue."  
  
"That's great, Mum!" Rahne exclaimed, but her face didn't show any of the enthusiasm that was in her words.  
  
"What's wrong, lass?" Moira said, looking down on her sternly. "I know ye well enough to know when something is wrong."  
  
Rahne sighed, absentmindedly kicking the ground. "I dinnea know... I was excited to see all of me friends from the States. But they seem so busy with everyone else and-"  
  
"And yuir lonely? Och, darling, dinnea worry 'bout that. I'm always here for ye." Moira smiled, cocking an eyebrow at Rahne's perhaps even more downcast expression. "But I know I'm not as fun as the rest of ye wee ones so how about this? We're gonna be receiving some extra help soon, a lad from the States that could probably help with figuring out all this computer mess." She winked at Rahne. "How 'bout ye show him around when he comes?"  
  
Rahne lifted her head, smiling considerably and threw her arms around Moira. "Thanks, Mum."  
  
***************  
  
The next day, Kitty was hanging out in the common room, enjoying a movie with both Illyana and Piotr, the latter of the two holding Kitty's hand to her immense delight when Pete strode in with a small box. Smirking at them with yet another cigarette dangling out of his mouth, he walked up to Kitty and Piotr on the couch. Kitty smiled a bit to see him, thinking of how he had showed he wasn't a complete jerk yesterday.  
  
"Hey, I got a little pressie for ya, Pryde," Pete mumbled before handing over the box and striding out of the room.  
  
With Illyana and Piotr's curious (and in Piotr's case, skeptical as well) eyes upon her, Kitty smiled as she began to open the box.  
  
Her smile instantly fell as she pulled open the lid and saw what was inside. Without bothering to get up, she simply phased through Piotr and the couch and turned to run after Pete, growling.  
  
"What's in it?" Illyana asked, with big eyes.  
  
Piotr gazed down to see a pair of fishnet stockings, a push up bra and a g- string. On top was a note from Pete that read: Pryde, Good luck in your dancing career. Suggest that you use the name "Kitty O'Puss" or some variation thereof. All my best, Pete.  
  
Somewhere further down in the labyrinth of Muir, an angry female voice could be heard to say "I hate you! You are SO dead, Wisdom!!!!!" followed by the muffled yelps of a man who soon found his hand phased through a glass window, his cigarette dangling on the other end, teasing him.  
  
*************** Okay, I know that if that really happened, Pete would be missing an arm BUT in evo-verse they seem oblivious to this fact, so deal with it! BLAH!!!  
  
Much love to any other Bowie fan out there and if your not, you're gonna have to d/l Moonage Daydream so you can get the full mental picture of Kitty singing that one.  
  
And why oh why are people so against the angst?! Sheesh.  
  
Since everyone seems so anti-angst, I guess I'll hold it off for now. Next chapter- the arrival of Doug Ramsey and Magik! What? You say Magik has already appeared? No, that's Illyana. Aren't they the same person, you ask? You'll just have to wait and see! BAWAHAHA!  
  
Erm. Yeah. 


	8. Dead At the Time

Title: Dead at the Time  
  
Note: It's not an angsty chap, despite what the title may portray! You'll enjoy it, I promise.  
  
*******  
  
It was dawn over Muir Island, the early sunlight piercing through the fierce, freezing fog. There was only one up to see it, a quiet young woman with blonde hair. Bangs fluttered over her startling clear blue eyes as she stood there, with her rags covered by her black cloak. She didn't even flinch even as the bone chilling wind cut through her.  
  
She wasn't used to the cold, but it was better than the oppressive heat that she had been forced to live in for the past fifteen years.  
  
She turned to face away from the dawn, surveying the Muir Medical Center. It was exactly as she had remembered it. And then she remembered that of course it would look exactly the same as she remembered, no time had passed in this world since she had been taken away.  
  
She had to change what had happened. She had to come to both fulfill and destroy her destiny.  
  
***************  
  
"Kurt? Did you leave the milk out?" Kitty sat at the breakfast table, holding a carton of lukewarm milk and glaring at Kurt.  
  
"Er...er... I was dead at the time!" Kurt declared and, upon grabbing a cinnamon roll and a glass of orange juice before quickly teleporting out of the room.  
  
Kitty raised an eyebrow, looking around as Meg giggled behind her spoonful of cereal. "What was that about?"  
  
Brian smiled. "Pete had an Eddie Izzard marathon last night for the guys. I think Kurt has a new personal hero."  
  
Kitty looked over at Piotr who was perched at the counter close to her. "Did you go too?"  
  
"Nyet, Katya," Piotr shook his head, "I spent most of the evening working out. When I got back to my room, I went to bed before I figured out where everyone else had disappeared to."  
  
"You should have found us, mate," Brian said, sipping his coffee. "It was a bloody great time."  
  
"Mmm," Betsy nodded, "It really was."  
  
Meg raised an eyebrow. "I thought it was only guys."  
  
Betsy smiled and winked at the girls. "Hard to get anything past a telepath though, eh?"  
  
Meg and Kitty instantly blushed; trying to not think about their respective crushes which, of course, only served to make their thoughts even stronger. Betsy giggled, sending a telepathic message to calm down.  
  
Pete suddenly burst into the kitchen, a grinning Illyana attached to his left leg. He grumbled and dragged the girl-on-his-leg across the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee and a cigarette.  
  
"Bloody 'ell! Oi, who let Moira make the coffee again?" he growled, making a face but swallowing the coffee all the same.  
  
"Good to see you too, Wisdom," Betsy smiled. "Sleep well, eh?"  
  
"Da, and why is my sister attached to your leg?" Piotr asked, glaring at the lanky and rumpled young man.  
  
"Don't ask me," he grumbled. "The rug rat woke me up and has been bleedin' bothering me since."  
  
"Come here, Yana," Kitty said, glaring at Pete, "and leave the nasty man alone."  
  
Pete grinned, lighting up his cigarette. "Wot, still pissed about me helping you with your stripper career?"  
  
Kitty snarled and sprung to her feet to pull Illyana away from Pete. "Come sit with your brother and me, sweetie."  
  
"Bloody yanks," Pete exhaled a cloud of smoke, "can't take a bleedin' joke."  
  
"I wanna stay with Pete!" Illyana cried, clinging closer to Wisdom. "He's a dragon!"  
  
"He's a what?!" Meggan asked, excitably. She had always wanted to see a dragon.  
  
"A dragon! See?" Illyana pointed up at Pete who was exhaling smoke from his nostrils.  
  
Kitty couldn't help but laugh. "That's not a dragon, Yana. Just a guy who smokes too much and will die young and alone."  
  
"Don't go filling our child with such horrible lies, Katherine darling," Pete sneered. "Course your daddy is a dragon, sweetie, and Mommy is a saber-toothed tiger."  
  
"Has anyone forgot that Illyana is my sister?" Piotr asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest and glaring at Pete, Yana and Kitty. "And Wisdom, I would appreciate if you did not poison her lungs with your second- hand smoke."  
  
"Well, detach the runt from my leg and you can poison her lungs with anything you want."  
  
Jono entered the kitchen then, nodding silently at everyone before sitting down to read the morning newspaper, looking at everyone else's breakfast a bit enviously. Now that Jono had joined them, an uncomfortable silence had fallen over the group, which Pete used to efficiently free himself of Illyana.  
  
The silence was short lived as Remy, Rogue and Kurt burst into the room, talking loudly.  
  
"Vhere vere YOU last night, Herr LeBeau?" Kurt teased, bouncing around the two. Rogue blushed slightly and angrily sat at the table, ignoring the curious smiles of Kitty and Meggan.  
  
Remy slowly turned to face Kurt, a half-smile on his face. "Remy dinks that if just get with de Meggan, you will stop intruding in de Remy and Rogue's business."  
  
Meggan perked up, looking around wildly. "What?"  
  
Despite his indigo blue fur, Kurt turned a crimson shade of red.  
  
"Hey Kurt!" Kitty spoke up, trying to bail out her best friend. By getting him into more trouble. "You ARE the one who left the milk out, right?!"  
  
But just before Kurt could decide whether he should reply or teleport out to safety again, a slim blonde woman in a black cloak appeared in the middle of the kitchen.  
  
"Sorry bout this, guys," the young woman muttered, rising up her arms. A purple disc appeared above her and with a gesture of her hands, it enlarged, surrounding all the occupants of the kitchen. In a blink, everyone was gone.  
  
A sleepy Rahne entered the kitchen, rubbing her tired eyes. She stopped short, looking around at the empty kitchen and the overturned glasses of orange juice, milk and coffee.  
  
"Where the hell is everyone else?"  
  
***************  
  
melissarxy1- You're always one step ahead of me! :P But you have yet to answer- what's with everyone's aversion to angst?  
  
RahneMan- He's coming, he's coming, he's coming!!!! Everyone get ready for Doug!!!  
  
Anything but ordinary3- You know what, Piotr and Pete MAY just get into a fight (since one of my fave issues of all time is 'Colossus Agonistes') but it won't be for some time now. And we'll see about Betsy, though right now I think she may have a crush on someone who's not available.  
  
Lightspeed Suzuka- Pete is indeed evil, but in the best way of possible. :P And yes, Pitty does sound very odd indeed.  
  
So stay tuned for the next chappie everyone! The whole gang is off to LIMBO!!!! 


	9. Trapped in Limbo

A/N: Thank you to everyone who spotted my mistake with Remy! I completly bungled that, so I'm including a corrected verision of the chapter and a little bit extra. More should be coming soon!  
  
Everywhere, a damp fog. Eleven figures, lost, cold, scared.  
  
Okay, maybe more annoyed than scared.  
  
"I knew we shoulda never taken in you X-types!!!"  
  
"How is this OUR fault Herr Wisdom?"  
  
"Give me a minute and I'll think of something."  
  
"Elf, your tail is in my face! Ewww!"  
  
"Sorry Keety. Ouch! What was that?!"  
  
"I got your tail now Kurt! And it's not ew at all Kitty, its all fuzzy and cute."  
  
"Ah man, Ah think someone should get those two a room."  
  
"Why would we need a room? Aren't we in a room now?"  
  
"I've got no clue at all where we are now. Bets, you sensing anything?"  
  
"Zip, bro. They're just the ten of us."  
  
"Bro?"  
  
"Can it Wisdom. Ten? But Betsy, I do believe that they were eleven originally."  
  
"De Remy agree with de ruskie. We got Jono?"  
  
Yah, yah, I'm here.  
  
"Okay, let's do this systemically. I'll call everyone's names off and you say 'here' okay?"  
  
"I say we say 'aye'. It's more bloody official."  
  
"Just say SOMETHING, okay?! Sheesh. Alright. Piotr?"  
  
"Da- I mean, here."  
  
"Meggan?"  
  
"Here!"  
  
"I know Kurt is here, unless anyone else grew an annoying fuzzy tail."  
  
"HEY!"  
  
"Brian?"  
  
"Present."  
  
"Remy?"  
  
"Oui."  
  
"Pete?"  
  
"AYE!"  
  
"Whatever. Betsy?"  
  
"Here, Kit."  
  
"Jono?"  
  
Didn't I already say here?  
  
"Illyana?" Silence. "Yana?"  
  
"Oh no. Wisdom if you did anything to my sister, I swear you will pay-"  
  
"Why is this my bleeding fault?!"  
  
Suddenly the smoked cleared and Pete and Piotr realized that they were staring into the faces of Kurt and Remy respectively, glaring since they both thought the other was in the space.  
  
"Oh, Remy don't dink it your fault, Petey," Remy drawled, grinning, "You not bright enough to pull dis off."  
  
"Go back to the bayou you crawled out of, Cajun," Pete growled, turning around to face the rest of the group who were trying to hide their giggles as much as possible. Except for Piotr, who was still very pissed and very frantic.  
  
"Where is Illyana?" he bellowed and almost as if on cue, the mysterious young woman from the kitchen back in Muir stepped from out of the fog. Excalibur and the X-Men instantly fell silent and Kitty shivered with an irrational fear that was playing upon her spine.  
  
"Pete is quite right," the woman said in a precise voice. "It is not his fault that you all are here and Illyana is gone. It is mine."  
  
Brian strode forward, glaring angrily at the cloaked woman. "What exactly is going on here, miss? My father has some very important government connections who will not take a kidnapping very lightly."  
  
A ghost of a smirk played upon the woman's lips. "This is not a kidnapping either." She paused, frowning slightly. "Not in so many words, exactly. I am here to help." The cloaked head rose and looked in the direction of Piotr. "In some years from now, your sister, Illyana, will be destroyed by a demonic sorcerer who will then proceed to kill thousands of innocents. I have brought you here to Limbo," the woman gestured around herself at the barren wasteland, "so that you may beat the sorcerer now and save Illyana."  
  
The group was quiet for a moment. Jono sighed to himself and enjoyed the rare opportunity of silence.  
  
"Where is my sister now?" Piotr demanded, his fists clenched at his sides.  
  
The woman in the black cloak shook her head and a small sigh escaped her lips. "She should be with you since I teleported all of you together. The sorcerer must have taken her."  
  
"We must get her back!" Piotr yelled and Kitty nodded adamantly at his side.  
  
The woman nodded and was still for a moment. Slowly she raised her arms and spread them out over the group. "I charge these nine with the task of finding the tenth, Illyana!" Her voice boomed throughout Limbo and lighting struck some feet away. Meggan cowered behind Kurt, who held her hand in order to comfort her.  
  
"I will send you nine on a journey to find her," the woman said, her voice steady once more. "Limbo is a magical place and time passes differently here and it is possible to end up in a different time and place all together. There is no way to know where Illyana is for sure. But I will divide you into two teams and send you on separate courses to save Illyana."  
  
With a movement of her hand, Kitty, Pete, Meggan, Rogue and Jono found themselves hurtling through time and space in one direction while Kurt, Piotr, Betsy, Remy and Brian were thrown in an opposite direction. As they passed by different eons and continents, the last words of the woman echoed in their heads:   
  
"Save Illyana. Save her from Belasco."  
  
After a brief but intense flash of light, Kitty, Pete, Meggan, Rogue and Jono all found themselves in very familiar territory. Back in Moira's kitchen.  
  
Looking around at her stunned and silent teammates, Kitty suddenly seized on Pete.  
  
"Okay Wisdom," she demanded, "what did you use?!"  
  
"Wot the bloody 'ell are you talking about," Pete growled, fumbling slightly for a cigarette.  
  
"What sort of acid or other bizarre and highly illegal drug did you put in our breakfast milk?!" Before Pete could respond, she held up a hand. "I don't care about what you do on your own time, and if going to very foggy places with mysterious older women is your thing, fine. But it's not the way that I want to start out MY morning, so PLEASE don't involve us."  
  
That couldn't have been some sort of drug trip, Jono telepathically mumbled, since I didn't eat or drink anything. Don't have a mouth, remember?  
  
There was a very awkward moment of silence where everyone looked at their shoes, doing their best to avoid Jono's stare, before Kitty began again.  
  
"So maybe it was airborne, then and-"  
  
No lungs either.  
  
Kitty grimaced a bit, trying to think of a proper apology. 'Sorry that I forgot you have a massive hole for a chest?' Like that wasn't weird.  
  
"I don't think you're right, Kitty," Meggan said nervously. She was biting her lip and hovering directly behind Pete. "This doesn't feel like the same place we left from."  
  
Frowning, Rogue began to walk around, inspecting the various pieces silverware lying on the kitchen table. "So what are ya sayin'? That we are righ' now in a different kitchen that looks exactly like Moira's?"  
  
Suddenly, the front door swung open, and Moira strode in, holding a cup of coffee and reading the morning newspaper. She walked across the room, pulled a small roll covered with salami from a kitchen cabinet and took a bit.  
  
"Ah, lovely," she said. Looking around at the shaken bunch of kids before her, she smiled. "What's wrong with you bunch? You look like you've seen Churchill's ghost, heaven forbid." Shaking her head, she clamped the sausage roll in her mouth, picked up her cup of coffee and newspaper and headed out the kitchen door.  
  
Rogue breathed a sigh of relief as she left. "Ah don't know about you guys, but this seems like the same old Moira as before."  
  
At that moment, Moira swung the door open again and popped her head in. "Oh, I almost forgot to tell you," she said, grinning at them, "but there's a couple of pagan mutates on the Soviet border stirring up trouble and Herr Xavier wants you to take care of it, okay? Heil Hitler!" And with that exclamation, she was gone once again.  
  
Looking at the white as a sheet Kitty and the terrified Meggan huddling in the corner, Pete shook his head. "We're screwed," he mumbled.

I KNOW I've been super-slow with these updates, for all my stories but for this one in particular. I just got an internship at a publishing company, so you're gonna have to be patient with me :) But now that the summer's here, I should be moving faster. Feel free to yell at me to go faster if you want! 


End file.
